Display sign



Dec. 15, 1942. w. WAGNER 2,305,047

DISPLAY SIGN Original Filed June 14, 1938 IN VENTOR.

ATTORNEYS Patented Dec. 15, 1942 DISPLAY SIGN Walter Wagner, Chicago, 111., assignor to Wagner Sign Service, Incorporated, Chicago, 111., a corporation of Illinois Original application June 14, 1938, Serial No. 213,603. Divided and this application April 8, 1940, Serial No. 328,457

3 Claims.

The present invention, which is a division of my application, Serial No. 213,603, filed June 14, 1938, issued into Patent No. 2,224,069 on Decemher 3, 1940, relates to signs ingeneral, and is particularly concerned with a novel sign comprising new building elements, especially for use with a wall or display surface composed of vitreous or glazed structures, such as glass bricks, tiles, ceramic plates or bodies, or the like.

The invention contemplates the provision of special building or carrier elements forming, together with normal building elements, a wall or display surface, these elements being constructed so as to provide carrier means removably supporting sign members, such as characters or letters, for display against the surface which they form.

The various objects and features of the invention will appear from the following detailed description of the accompanying drawing, [wherein:

Fig. 1 illustrates a building element made in accordance with this invention;

Fig. 2 represents another embodiment of such a building element;

Fig. 3 illustrates a section taken along the line 3-3 in Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 shows another embodiment of the invention using ordinary building elements such as glass bricks, forming a wall or display surface;

Fig. 5 represents an assembled sign, i. e., characters or sign elements mounted on a display surface or building structure, using building elements of the type disclosed herein; and

Fig. 6 is a side View taken from the left of one of the characters of the sign assemblage shown in Fig. 5 so as to indicate the general type of characters of which such a sign is constructed.

The term building element or equivalent language is used herein to define a brick-, tile-, or plate-like structure of a body adapted to be used as an element for building a wall or a surface of a wall. It may be made of glass or ceramic material, or of a composite material, and may have a glazed, vitreous or enamelled surface. The term carrier element is meant to define a special type of such a building element provided with means or serving as a support for,

means on which may be mounted sign characters.

Referring now to the drawing, Fig. 1 shows a building element, for example, a glass brick l I which is molded with an integral angular forward tilting ledge l2. with a drain opening 13. If a number of such brick elements, or carrier elements, are aligned in a row in a glassbrick wall, surrounded by ordinary bricks or building elements, the corresponding ledges I2 will form a contiguous or substantially continuous carrier for receiving characters in the manner indicated, for example, in Fig. 5.

Assuming the building wall or display surface generally indicated in Fig. 5 at M to be made of building elements such as glass bricks, certain sections of this Wall may contain specially formed glass bricks such as the one described above in connection with Fig. 1. There are three such sections shown in Fig. 5 in prominent lines, so as to emphasize their position, these special sections or rows being indicated at i5, i0 and I1.

, Each row, as already noted, is composed of carrier elements shaped like the one shown in Fig. l. The bold outline of these rows (l5, l6, i'l) of building elements or bricks in Fig. 5 has been adopted only for the sake of representation. Itis understood that in practice these carrier elements completely and inconspicuously merge with the rest of the building or wall structure. The building elements surrounding these special sections in the wall may be ordinary glass bricks, or equivalent elements.

The carrier ledges such as l2 (Fig. 1) of the bricks in the rows l5, l6, ll shown in Fig.5, are in alignment, forming in each row a continuous or contiguous edge or ledge for receivingthe characters, letters or sign elements such as shown in Fig. 5, namely, the characters A, B, C, and the numerals I and 2. These characters or sign elements may be of the general type disclosed in the United States Patent No. 2,048,040, issued July 21, 1936; that is, each character may be provided with peripheral flanges which are notched at intervals for engaging the carrier edges or ledges, as shown in Fig. 6. In this figure, l4 indicates the building wall as such, I5 is one of the carrier elements in the corresponding row in Fig. 5, and i6 corresponds to one of the carrier elements in the other row I6 also shown in Fig. 5. Each of these carrier elements, as already described, may be provided with a drain opening (I3 in Fig. 1), also indicated in Fig. 5, so as to facilitate the drainage of moisture from the carrier ledges.

The ledge on a carrierelement such as described may also be made in accordance with the structures shown in Figs. 2 and 3, wherein the body is indicated at 20 and 2| indicates an This ledge may be provided angular member having a ledge 22 which is molded into the body 20. Stamped out from the plate or carrier member 2! may be teeth 23, as shown in Fig. 3, and the plate may be put in the mold and will then be firmly attached to the molded brick. The ledge 22 may again be provided with a drain aperture or opening such as 24 shown in Fig. 2. This building or carrier element may be used in the identical manner of the one shown in Fig. l in a sign assemblage such as shown in Fig. 5.

The invention may also be employed with a wall or display surface of the general type described herein without providing specially shaped carrier elements such as shown in Figs. 1-3. This is indicated in Fig. 4. A metallic carrier member 39 having a forwardly protruding angular edge or ledge 3| may be inserted between two rows of building elements, such as glass bricks or substantially equivalent building elements, one row being shown at 32 and the other at 33. in the lower row constitute the carrier elements in this embodiment. Drain openings 34 may again be provided in the ledge 3| for the purpose described previously. This ledge may be as long as desired, within the limit of the available wall space and the length or size of the sign that is desired to be displayed, and may be of one piece or of several sections. Above and below, .between similar rows, may be inserted like ledges or carrier members forming lines or carrier ledges for receiving and supporting characters against the display surface.

The member 30, 3|, shown in Fig. 4, may be differently shaped. For example, a carrier member of suitable or desired cross-section may be used, which is spaced from the, display surface, taking the place of the, ledge 3|, with supports extending rearwardly therefrom at its ends, or at desired points throughout its length taking the place of the support section 30. The carrier ledge, such as [2, 22, or 3|, in any embodiment, or the equivalent thereof, may be varied as to shape and size in accordance with the particular type of sign characters to be supported and displayed thereon.

The characters indicated in Fig. 5 show merely the manner in which the mounting is accomplished. It is understood that the characters, figures, numerals or symbols may be chosen and assembled so as to form a desired message.

The individual building elements Changes may be made within the scope and limits of the appended claims, wherein I have defined what I believe is new and desire to have protected by Letters Patent of the United States.

I claim:

1. As an article of manufacture, a prefabricated brick-like building element for use in forming with other building elements a vertically extending wall surface, said building element consisting of a body portion having a plane substantially unbroken frontal surface, a carrier member angularly projecting from said body portion at the top edge thereof out of the plane of said frontal surface and at an angle inclined upwardly and forwardly of said frontal surface forming a troughlike ledge at the top of said body. portion for supporting a sign letter forming part of a message assembled for display against the Wall surface in which said building element is incorporated, said carrier member forming with said body portion a complete prefabricated unit, and an aperture in said ledge for draining moisture therefrom downwardly over the frontalsurface of said body portion.

2. In the construction of an outdoor changeable sign wherein a, plurality of letters forming a message are removably supported for display,.

a device for supporting said letters and for forming the background therefor, said device comprising a plurality of brick-like building elements assembled with other building elements to form a vertical wall surface and disposed on said wall surface in a horizontally extending row of ele ments forming a display panel, each said building element comprising a body portion having a. plane substantially unbroken frontal face which.

is in the plane of said wall surface, and a ledgelike projection extending from said frontal face at an angle inclined upwardly and forwardly at the top thereof, the forward edge of said ledgelike projection extending substantially in parallel with the plane of the frontal face of said body portion and forming with the ledge-like projections of the otherbuilding elements in its row a "substantially continuous horizontal ledge on which said letters are assembled for display.

3. The structure and combination defined in claim 2, wherein a plurality of horizontally disposed vertically spaced rows of identical building elements form said display panel on said wall surface, the horizontal continuous ledges of said rows receiving said letters for display.

WALTER WAGNER. 

